What made you interested in tattooing?My grandfather had a tattoo, and I always knew after seeing his that I wanted one too. I was attending the Art Institute of Chicago, went through a few personal life changes, and then got into tattooing through a buddy of mine.

How would people describe you as a person?I am a spontaneous person, although I don’t recommend spontaneity with body art.

What’s your best advice for anyone interested in becoming a professional tattoo artist?Well, everybody is different. Artists need to listen to their clients and find out as much information about a person as they can, what they do, what their family is like, and their job. Things like that help to create the most personal body art.

What is your most important advice for tattoo customers?Your decision is going to last forever, so look at other artists, look at other shops. Don’t worry about price, worry about the artist. Worry about the quality of the art.

What’s the most rewarding part of being a tattoo artist and owning Fallen Star Tattoo in Batavia, IL?The most rewarding part is that it’s a humbling experience to see all walks of life. Football players, musicians, and random people that you don’t know walk through the doors and they want to wear your art forever. I’m a people person, so that’s just very fulfilling.

What sets Fallen Star Tattoo in Batavia, IL apart from the other tattoo shops in the area?Well, I can talk bartender wonderfully.

Most other artists and shops are about the money , and how quickly they can get the next customer in. Our other artists and I got into this career to paint, meet new people, and go new places.

Are you involved in the local community?Yes, Batavia is an arts community within Chicago, so there’s a few things we’ve done. We set up tents at a festival downtown and did airbrush tattoos for children all day. It was there a woman walked up after seeing us laughing and entertaining kids. She explained she never set foot into a tattoo shop because she was intimidated by the artists and the process. After meeting our crew, she was actually interested in getting her first tattoo!

Halloween is our largest event. Last year, we did intricate pumpkin carvings and set up 25 pumpkins to display downtown. We did that all morning. We worked against the clock, some 5-6 hours, hoping to keep those pumpkins fresh while we carved the rest.

Biggest misconception about professional tattoo artists:We’re not all bikers or gangbangers, we’re artists- we aren’t bad people.

Future goals for Fallen Star Tattoo:I don’t want to be rich. I don’t need to be famous. I want security and comfort. I hope to purchase our building, start hosting guest artists, and begin branding our business with logos and t-shirts. We have a very talented crew. I want to watch Fallen Star Tattoo rise.

Name your dream client:Any of the Chicago Bears players. I’m a big fan and we’re just twenty minutes to downtown.It’s football season!

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Tattoo.com was founded in 1998 by a group of friends united by their shared passion for ink. Dedicated to both artists and human canvasses, Tattoo.com provides community members with ink-related news, offers, and artistic recognition.